Godzilla opens in Japan

[Aaron Gerow]

Godzilla opened in Japan this last Saturday, to what was apparently a
record opening day audience.

Here's a selection from a wire service article on audience reaction that
again focuses on the differences between the Japanese and American
versions as well as on national pride:

"When the new Godzilla was unveiled in the United States, Japanese
Godzilla fans said the new beast lacked some of the
characteristics that endeared it to hometown fans. They also objected to
the fact that the new lizard was bent on destruction while their
classic Godzilla occasionally took breaks from his rampages to save the
world.

Gone are the short stubby legs, the plodding movements and the
jump-for-joy frenzy upon slaying a foe that Japanese fans associated
with their monster.

"They say that this new Godzilla can run about 400 kilometers per hour
(240 miles per hour). But, that is not the Godzilla I know,"
said Yukiko Hirayama, a 36-year-old telecommunications worker. Hirayama
said she would go to the new film because she is
interested in seeing the differences between the Godzilla she knows from
decades of movie-viewing and the new Hollywood version.

"Godzilla is scary and violent, but it is also cute, offbeat," Hirayama
said.
Officials at Toho Co., the studio that gave birth to Godzilla in a 1954
picture (followed by 21 sequels), are excited about taking the
U.S. monster to Japanese theaters.

"Taking our homegrown creature to Hollywood was like Japanese baseball
players Hideo Nomo and Hideki Irabu making it big in the
Major Leagues," a Toho official said."

Aaron Gerow
Yokohama National University
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